Ole Miss Football: Five Takeways From The Rebels Season Opener
Running Game Questions?
Yes, we realize JUCO transfer Scottie Phillips had a great game which saw him become the Rebels first 200+ yard single game rush since 2010. Phillips finished against the Red Raiders with 16 carries for 204 yards and 2 TDs. It was simply an outstanding performance. However, the Rebels only netted 210 rushing yards total. Coach Longo dedicated 28 out 60 total plays to the run game which is a very good mix of run and pass. Jordan Ta’amu contributed 6 of those 28 leaving the remainder of touches to freshmen Isaiah Woullard and Tylan Knight.
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Woullard and Knight are both great backs and could possibly be effective with more touches should Phillips become unavailable. With D’Vaughn Pennamon‘s return unscheduled and Eric Swinney out it puts the Rebels backfield in a somewhat thin position already. With Swinney not expected back until week-four, do we see some older backs move into the Rebels backfield rotation this week? Considering Bama is just two weeks away I would think Phillips may see a few less touches this Saturday against Southern Illinois and we could see Armani Linton and DK Buford get some snaps.